Severe Obesity Increases in US
2024-10-08
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1Body weight continues to be a big public health issue in the United States.
2New government research suggests that the condition of having far too much fat stored in the body - severe obesity - has increased greatly over the past ten years.
3The U.S. obesity rate is about 40 percent, says a 2021-2023 study of about 6,000 people.
4Almost one in 10 of those questioned reported severe obesity, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found.
5Women were nearly two times as likely as men to report severe obesity.
6The overall obesity rate appeared to decrease in comparison to the 2017-2020 survey.
7But the change was not considered statistically meaningful.
8In other words, the numbers are small enough that there is a mathematical chance the rates did not truly drop.
9Dr. Samuel Emmerich is the CDC public health officer who led the latest study.
10He said it is too soon to know whether new treatments for obesity, including weight-loss drugs such as Wegovy and Zepbound, can help ease the disease.
11"We simply can't see down to that detailed level to prescription medication use and compare that to changes in obesity prevalence," Emmerich said.
12He added, "Hopefully that is something we can see in the future."
13The results show that the overall obesity rate in the U.S. has not changed much in ten years.
14The rate of severe obesity climbed from almost eight percent in the 2013-2014 study to almost 10 percent in the most recent one.
15Before that, obesity had increased quickly in the U.S. since the 1990s, federal studies showed.
16Measures of obesity and severe obesity are based on the body mass index (BMI), a computation involving height and weight.
17People with a BMI of 30 are considered obese.
18Those with a BMI of 40 or higher have severe obesity.
19Solveig Cunningham is an Emory University global health professor who specializes in obesity.
20Cunningham said, "Seeing increases in severe obesity is even more alarming because that's the level of obesity that's most highly associated with some of the highest levels of cardiovascular disease and diabetes and lower quality of life."
21Cunningham, who was not involved in the new study, said it is not clear why rates of severe obesity are going up.
22Cunningham also said it is not clear why severe obesity rates were higher among women.
23Reasons could include the effects of hormones, the effects of childbearing or other causes that require further study, she said.
24The new study also found that obesity rates varied by education.
25Almost 32 percent of people with a bachelor's degree or higher reported having obesity.
26In comparison, about 45 percent of those with some college or less had obesity.
27The new report follows the release earlier this month of data from U.S. states and territories that showed that in 2023, the rate of obesity differed widely by place.
28The highest obesity levels were in West Virginia. Around 41 percent of adults in the state are obese.
29The lowest levels were in Washington, D.C., with less than 24 percent of adults being obese.
30Obesity rates were highest in the Midwest and the South.
31All U.S. states and territories had obesity rates higher than 20 percent.
32In 23 states, more than 1 in 3 adults had obesity, the data showed.
33Before 2013, no state had a rate that high, said Dr. Alyson Goodman, who leads a CDC team focused on population health.
34Color-coded maps show the obesity rates across the U.S.
35"Sometimes, when you look at all that red, it's really discouraging," Goodman said.
36But, she added, recent attention on understanding obesity as a metabolic disease and new drug treatments give her hope.
37Preventing obesity is most important, Cunningham said, starting in early childhood.
38And for people already dealing with obesity, preventing additional weight gain should be the goal.
39I'm John Russell. And I'm Ashley Thompson.
1Body weight continues to be a big public health issue in the United States. New government research suggests that the condition of having far too much fat stored in the body - severe obesity - has increased greatly over the past ten years. 2The U.S. obesity rate is about 40 percent, says a 2021-2023 study of about 6,000 people. Almost one in 10 of those questioned reported severe obesity, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found. Women were nearly two times as likely as men to report severe obesity. 3The overall obesity rate appeared to decrease in comparison to the 2017-2020 survey. But the change was not considered statistically meaningful. In other words, the numbers are small enough that there is a mathematical chance the rates did not truly drop. 4Dr. Samuel Emmerich is the CDC public health officer who led the latest study. He said it is too soon to know whether new treatments for obesity, including weight-loss drugs such as Wegovy and Zepbound, can help ease the disease. 5"We simply can't see down to that detailed level to prescription medication use and compare that to changes in obesity prevalence," Emmerich said. He added, "Hopefully that is something we can see in the future." 6The results show that the overall obesity rate in the U.S. has not changed much in ten years. The rate of severe obesity climbed from almost eight percent in the 2013-2014 study to almost 10 percent in the most recent one. 7Before that, obesity had increased quickly in the U.S. since the 1990s, federal studies showed. 8Measures of obesity and severe obesity are based on the body mass index (BMI), a computation involving height and weight. People with a BMI of 30 are considered obese. Those with a BMI of 40 or higher have severe obesity. 9Solveig Cunningham is an Emory University global health professor who specializes in obesity. 10Cunningham said, "Seeing increases in severe obesity is even more alarming because that's the level of obesity that's most highly associated with some of the highest levels of cardiovascular disease and diabetes and lower quality of life." 11Cunningham, who was not involved in the new study, said it is not clear why rates of severe obesity are going up. Cunningham also said it is not clear why severe obesity rates were higher among women. 12Reasons could include the effects of hormones, the effects of childbearing or other causes that require further study, she said. 13The new study also found that obesity rates varied by education. Almost 32 percent of people with a bachelor's degree or higher reported having obesity. In comparison, about 45 percent of those with some college or less had obesity. 14The new report follows the release earlier this month of data from U.S. states and territories that showed that in 2023, the rate of obesity differed widely by place. 15The highest obesity levels were in West Virginia. Around 41 percent of adults in the state are obese. 16The lowest levels were in Washington, D.C., with less than 24 percent of adults being obese. 17Obesity rates were highest in the Midwest and the South. 18All U.S. states and territories had obesity rates higher than 20 percent. In 23 states, more than 1 in 3 adults had obesity, the data showed. Before 2013, no state had a rate that high, said Dr. Alyson Goodman, who leads a CDC team focused on population health. 19Color-coded maps show the obesity rates across the U.S. 20"Sometimes, when you look at all that red, it's really discouraging," Goodman said. 21But, she added, recent attention on understanding obesity as a metabolic disease and new drug treatments give her hope. 22Preventing obesity is most important, Cunningham said, starting in early childhood. And for people already dealing with obesity, preventing additional weight gain should be the goal. 23I'm John Russell. And I'm Ashley Thompson. 24Jonel Aleccia reported on this story for the Associated Press. John Russell adapted it for VOA Learning English. 25___________________________________________ 26Words in This Story 27statistically - adv. of or relating to the principles of statistics 28prescription - n. a written direction for a therapeutic or corrective agent 29prevalence - n. the percentage of a population that is affected with a particular disease at a given time 30cardiovascular - adj. of, relating to, or involving the heart and blood vessels 31diabetes - n. a variable disorder of carbohydrate metabolism